Tara Garza, FNP, MSN, BSN, has joined Parkview Physicians Group (PPG) – Family Medicine in Bryan and is welcoming patients at the office, 442 W. High St., second floor.
“Tara is an experienced nurse practitioner, and we are very glad she’s chosen to serve the Williams County community as part of the Parkview family of providers,” noted Sally Taylor, vice president of operations, PPG, Ohio.
Garza returns to Parkview after years serving patients at Community Memorial Hospital. As a registered nurse, she cared for the complex needs of patients in the emergency room, the medical/surgical unit, the intensive care unit (ICU) and the obstetrics (OB) department. As a family nurse practitioner, she has provided comprehensive primary care for patients from newborn to older adult and has served as a preceptor for nurses and nurse practitioners in training.
Garza began her nursing career as a telemetry nurse at Parkview Randallia Hospital, working with patients who had past or ongoing cardiac conditions.
Garza received her master’s degree in nursing (Family Nurse Practitioner) from Graceland University in Independence, Missouri. She earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana, after having received an associate degree from Northwest State Community College (NSCC) in Archbold, Ohio. She has been recognized among NSCC’s Distinguished Alumni.
Board certified by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, Garza is a member of the AMDA – The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term-Care Medicine as well as the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.
Drawn to a medical career in childhood, Garza found satisfaction in nursing and has challenged herself to perform at a higher level for the benefit of her patients.
“I loved bedside nursing, but I felt I had the skills to help community members even more as a nurse practitioner, so I obtained further education,” she said. “Being a family medicine nurse practitioner enables me to build a trusting medical relationship with people from birth until their final days. I like that I’m able to take the time to get to know my patients – not just their medical conditions, but who they are and what they enjoy – so I can individualize their plan of care and find what will work best for them. I have experience with the elderly and enjoy the stories my older patients share; helping them live their best lives is very important.”
Outside of work, Garza enjoys reading and family time with her spouse, four children and three grandchildren. She finds travel therapeutic, especially the sun and ocean breezes of cruising.
A believer in community support through volunteerism, in recent years, she has served on the Four County Career Center Health Occupations Advisory Board, as a board member of Community Memorial Hospital Rural Health Clinic and as a Gateway Woods mentor to a teen mother.
Garza is welcoming patients of all ages. To schedule an appointment, call 419-636-4517.
Garza’s office hours are 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. Monday, 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Wednesday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Thursday, and 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Friday.
Lab and imaging services are also available at the PPG – Family Medicine office. Lab hours are 7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Mon–Fri. Imaging is open 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Mon–Fri.
